Rope splicing implement

ABSTRACT

A rope splicing implement which permits pointed jaw members to be inserted between adjacent strands of a rope and opened when its handle members are squeezed together. A locking lever member is pivotally secured to one of the handle members and cammingly engages the other handle member. A threaded bolt member serves as an adjustable stop member for the locking lever member whereby the amount of opening of the jaw members may be varied. A tension spring member coupled with an over-toggle action of the locking lever permits the implement to be locked in its open position whereby both hands of the user are free to effect the rope splicing or laminating. Thereafter, a release lever may be actuated with one hand to close the jaw members.

United States Patent Bell [151 3,654,755 [451 Apr. 11, 1972 [54] ROPESPLICING IMPLEMENT [72] Inventor: Clarence R. Bell, c/o KM Cafe, GraysRiver, Wash. 98621 [22] Filed: July 28,1970

[21] Appl.No.: 58,841

[52] U.S.Cl ..57/23,81/302,81/367, 81/380 [51] lnt.Cl. ..B65h69/06,B25b7/12 [58] Field ofSearch ..57/22,23, 159; 81/5.l, 302, 81/367-380, 418

[56] References Cited UNlTED STATES PATENTS 2,222,744 11/1940Gallien,Jr. ..81/302 2,695,540 11/1954 Berger ..81/380 2,714,828 8/1955Britton ..81/380 2,168,812 8/1939 Van Keurenl ..81/302X 2,840,082 6/1958Salvatore ..8l/302X 2,884,755 5/1959 Malm ..57/23 FOREIGN PATENTS ORAPPLICATIONS 506,053 9/1954 Canada ..81/380 1,139,458 2/1957 France..81/302 Primary Examiner-John Petrakes Attorney-Paris, Haskell andLevine [57] ABSTRACT A rope splicing implement which permits pointed jawmem bers to be inserted between adjacent strands of a rope and openedwhen its handle members are squeezed together. A locking lever member ispivotally secured to one of the handle members and cammingly engages theother handle member. A threaded bolt member serves as an adjustable stopmember for the locking lever member whereby the amount of opening of thejaw members may be varied. A tension spring member coupled with anover-toggle action of the locking lever permits the implement to belocked in its open position whereby both hands of the user are free toeffect the rope splicing or laminating. Thereafter, a release lever maybe actuated with one hand to close the jaw members.

11 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures PATENTEDAPR 11 m2 3,654,755

i MWM ATTORNEYS ROPE SPLICING IMPLEMENT This invention relates to a ropesplicing implement and, more particularly, to a rope splicing implementwhich may be locked in its open position.

Devices similar to that disclosed in the present invention, referred toin the trade as fidsf. are used to provide an opening between adjacentstrands of rope. Customarily fids are made from tapering pins of wood oriron to stretch and wedge apart adjacent strands of rope to make asplice or lamination.

The splicing of ropes consists primarily of the simple procedure oftucking loose strand ends under strands in a laid portion of the rope.It requires that the laid strands be separated enough to yield anopening through which the tuck end may be inserted. For small ropes thismay be accomplished with merely finger strength, but with larger ropes,such as those of an inch or more in diameter, it is necessary to use afid of some sort with or without the use of additional pressure such asprovided by the application of a mallet. However, the fid must bewithdrawn before the tuck can be inserted, and the elasticity of thestrands sometimes makes it difficult to insert the tuck without the useof considerable skill, dexterity and speed on the part of the personmaking the splice. In addition, a considerable amount of physicalstrength is required to insert the fid a sufficient length to give thenecessary opening especially when large diameter strands of rope areinvolved. Ropes with greater elasticity, such as Nylon, makes it evenmore difficult to get the tuck between the strands before they pull backinto place.

Some implements or fids have been devised which are relativelycomplicated to assemble and expensive to make in that they employmeshing pinion and gear members which must be turned in order to obtainthe necessary mechanical advantage to separate the strands of the rope.

In accordance with the present invention, a vice grip type wrench ismodified whereby the jaw members will open rather than close when thehandle members are squeezed and an over-toggle action permits the jawmembers to be locked in their open position. Actuation of a simplerelease lever overcomes the over-toggle action and closes the jawmembers. Accordingly, the rope splicing implement of the presentinvention can be manufactured from relatively standard parts which maybe produced and assembled economically.

The inherent advantages and improvements of the present invention willbecome more readily apparent upon considering the following detaileddescription of the invention and by reference to the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view, partially in cross section, showing the ropesplicing implement of the present invention in one position thereof;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the rope splicing implement of FIG. 1 inanother position thereof and with parts broken away for purposes ofclarity; and,

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary top plan view of the rope splicer element asseen along Line 33 of FIG. 2.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings, there is shown asplicing implement, indicated generally at 10, which is inserted betweenadjacent strands of rope l2, l4. Splicing tool has an upper taperingnose or jaw member 16 and a lower tapering nose or jaw member 18. Theends of the upper and lower tapering nose members 16 and 18 aresubstantially pointed and conical in cross section. The upper and lowernose members 16 and 18 are pivoted at 20 which may be any suitable pivotsource such as that provided by a nut and bolt assembly.

The upper tapering nose member 16 is provided with a downwardly andrearwardly extending portion 22 which passes through the lower nosemember 18 as seen best in FIG. 3. A substantially U-shaped handle 24 ispivotally connected at pivot point 26 to the rearwardly and downwardlyextending portion 22 of nose member 16. A second handle 28 is integralwith the lower tapering nose member 18 and is also substantiallyU-shaped in cross section. Handle 28 thereby provides a slot withinwhich a free end of a locking lever 30 may be positioned. Locking lever30 is pivotally attached to handle 24 at 32.

Handle 28 is provided with an internally threaded portion 34 at oneterminal end thereof within which is threadedly received a threaded bolt36. As seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, bolt 36 has a head 38 at its outer end anda stop abutment 40 at its innermost end. Locking lever 30 has a firstcamming surface 42 which is engaged by the stop abutment 40 on threadedbolt 36 and a second camming flange 44 which engages the base of theU-shaped handle 28 when the handles 24 and 28 are squeezed together asshown in FIG. 2 in order to open the upper tapering nose member 16 fromthe lower tapering nose member 18.

A tension spring 46 is attached to rearwardly extending portion 22 ofthe upper nose member 16 at 48 by having one end thereof insertedtherethrough. The other end of tension spring 46 is suitably attached toa hook 50 which is struck from the base of the U-shaped handle member28.

As shown best in FIG. 3, the handle 28 has a yoke portion identified at52, 54 to receive the rearwardly and downwardly extending portion 22 ofupper tapering nose member 16 through opening 56. This provides ineffect a crossover of the upper and lower jaw members connected to theirrespective handles 24 and 28 whereby upon squeezing of the handlemembers 26 and 28 together the jaw members 16 and 18 separate.

In order to release the implement from its locked position, U-shapedhandle 24 carries a release lever 58 pinned across the legs of handle 24at 60. A camming projection 62 extends toward the nose members 16, 18from pin 60 and is engaged by cam 64 on lockinglever 30 when theimplement is locked as shown in FIG. 2. This engagement causes releaselever 58 to move away from the free end of handle 24. In order torelease the implement 10 from its locked position, release lever 58 ismerely pressed toward the free end of handle 24 moving cammingprojection 62 clockwise about pivot 60 and reversing or counteractingthe over-toggle position of pivot 32 on locking lever 30. Spring 46 nowacts to close upper and lower nose members 16 and 18.

In operation, the implement is inserted between adjacent strands l2 and14 of a rope desired to be spliced and handles 24 and 28 are squeezedtogether in order to open the upper and lower tapering nose members 16and 18. The amount of opening is determined by the position of threadedbolt 36 whose inner stop abutment end 40 engages camming surface 42 oflocking lever 30 forcing camming flange 44 into abutting relationshipwith a base of U-shaped handle 28. The pivotal connection of lockinglever 30 at 32 to the handle 24 is such that the pivot 32 assumes anover-toggle position in moving from the FIG. 1 position to the FIG. 2position whereby the upper and lower nose members 16 and 18 are lockedin their open position when handles 24 and 28 are squeezed together. Inother words, as viewed in FIG. 2, tension spring 46 creates a clockwisetorque about pivot point 26 and pivot point 32 is slightly above animaginary line interconnecting pivot 26 with the engagement of stopabutment 40 with camming surface 42. Thus there is established anover-toggle position in which the splicing implement 10 is locked in itsopen position. Thus the user has both hands free to make the requiredsplice or lamination.

While a presently preferred embodiment of the invention has beenillustrated and described, it will be recognized that the invention maybe otherwise variously embodied and practiced within the scope of theclaims which follow.

What is claimed is:

1. A rope splicing implement comprising a. an upper jaw member,

b. a lower jaw member pivotally connected to said upper jaw member,

1. said upper and lower jaw members having tapering and substantiallypointed nose portions adapted to be inserted between adjacent strands ofa rope,

c. a first handle member pivotally secured to said upper jaw member on aside of said pivotal connection opposed to said nose portion thereof,

d. a second handle member secured to said lower jaw member,

e. and a lever member pivotally connected to said first handle memberand cammingly engaging said second handle member,

f. whereby upon squeezing said first and second handle members togethersaid upper and lower jaw members are opened.

2. A rope splicing implement as claimed in claim 1 including a threadedbolt member threadedly received in an end of said second handle memberand in engagement with said lever member to vary the amount of openingbetween said upper and lower jaw members when said first and secondhandle members are squeezed together.

3. A rope splicing implement as defined in claim 1 including a tensionspring member interconnecting said second handle member and said upperjaw member and said pivotal connection of said lever member to saidfirst handle member producing an over-toggle action when said handlemembers are squeezed together whereby said jaw members are locked intheir open position.

4. A rope splicing implement as defined in claim 3 including releasemeans carried by said first handle member engageable with said levermember to reverse said over-toggle action and close said jaw members.

5. A rope splicing implement as defined in claim 3 including a threadedbolt member threadedly received in an end of said second handle memberand engageable with said lever member to vary the amount of openingbetween said upper and lower jaw members when said first and secondhandle members are squeezed together.

6. A rope splicing implement as defined in claim 1 wherein said secondhandle member is integral with said lower jaw member and issubstantially U-shaped in cross section, and said lever member has afirst camming surface engageable with the base of said U-shaped secondhandle member and a second camming surface engageable with a stopabutment carried by said second handle member.

7. A rope splicing implement as defined in claim 6 wherein said stopabutment carried by said second handle member consists of an end of athreaded bolt member received in a threaded end of said second handlemember whereby the position of said stop abutment may be changed to varythe amount of opening between said upper and lower jaw members when saidfirst and second handle members are squeezed together.

8. A rope splicing implement as defined in claim 7 including a tensionspring member interconnecting said second handle member and said upperjaw member and said pivotal connection of said lever member to saidfirst handle member producing an over-toggle action when said handlemembers are squeezed together whereby said jaw members are locked intheir open position.

9. A rope splicing implement as defined in claim 8 including releasemeans carried by said first handle member engageable with said levermember to reverse said over-toggle action and close said jaw members.

10. A rope splicing implement as claimed in claim 6 including a tensionspring member interconnecting said second handle member and said upperjaw member and said pivotal connection of said lever member to saidfirst handle member producing an over-toggle action when said handlemembers are squeezed together whereby said jaw members are locked intheir open position.

11. A rope splicing implement as defined in claim 10 including releasemeans carried by said first handle member engageable with said levermember to reverse said over-toggle action and close said jaw members.

1. A rope splicing implement comprising a. an upper jaw member, b. alower jaw member pivotally connected to said upper jaw member,
 1. saidupper and lower jaw members having tapering and substantially pointednose portions adapted to be inserted between adjacent strands of a rope,c. a first handle member pivotally secured to said upper jaw member on aside of said pivotal connection opposed to said nose portion thereof, d.a second handle member secured to said lower jaw member, e. and a levermember pivotally connected to said first handle member and camminglyengaging said second handle member, f. whereby upon squeezing said firstand second handle members together said upper and lower jaw members areopened.
 2. A rope splicing implement as claimed in claim 1 including athreaded bolt member threadedly received in an end of said second handlemember and in engagement with said lever member to vary the amount ofopening between said upper and lower jaw members when said first andsecond handle members are squeezed together.
 3. A rope splicingimplement as defined in claim 1 including a tension spring memberinterconnecting said second handle member and said upper jaw member andsaid pivotal connection of said lever member to said first handle memberproducing an over-toggle action when said handle members are squeezedtogether whereby said jaw members are locked in their open position. 4.A rope splicing implement as defined in claim 3 including release meanscarried by said first handle member engageable with said lever member toreverse said over-toggle action and close said jaw members.
 5. A ropesplicing implement as defined in claim 3 including a threaded boltmember threadedly received in an end of said second handle member andengageable with said lever member to vary the amount of opening betweensaid upper and lower jaw members when said first and second handlemembers are squeezed together.
 6. A rope splicing implement as definedin claim 1 wherein said second handle member is integral with said lowerjaw member and is substantially U-shaped in cross section, and saidlever member has a first camming surface engageable with the base ofsaid U-shaped second handle member and a second camming surfaceengageable with a stop abutment carried by said second handle member. 7.A rope splicing implement as defined in claim 6 wherein said stopabutment carried by said second handle member consists of an end of athreaded bolt member received in a threaded end of said second handlemember whereby the position of said stop abutment may be changed to varythe amount of opening between said upper and lower jaw members when saidfirst and second handle members are squeezed together.
 8. A ropesplicing implement as defined in claim 7 including a tension springmember interConnecting said second handle member and said upper jawmember and said pivotal connection of said lever member to said firsthandle member producing an over-toggle action when said handle membersare squeezed together whereby said jaw members are locked in their openposition.
 9. A rope splicing implement as defined in claim 8 includingrelease means carried by said first handle member engageable with saidlever member to reverse said over-toggle action and close said jawmembers.
 10. A rope splicing implement as claimed in claim 6 including atension spring member interconnecting said second handle member and saidupper jaw member and said pivotal connection of said lever member tosaid first handle member producing an over-toggle action when saidhandle members are squeezed together whereby said jaw members are lockedin their open position.
 11. A rope splicing implement as defined inclaim 10 including release means carried by said first handle memberengageable with said lever member to reverse said over-toggle action andclose said jaw members.